Restaurant Turns Man Away, But Learns Not To Judge Someone By How They Look

By: Mackenzie Wright | August 7, 2019

Many people remember the scenes in the 1990 film, 'Pretty Woman', in which Julia Roberts walks into a fancy Rodeo Drive shop looking to buy a dress. The snotty saleswomen refuse to serve her because of the way she is dressed and send her away.

Later, after billionaire Richard Gere hooks her up with an unlimited line of credit, Roberts returns to the store in new designer duds, her arms overflowing with packages, to ask the women if they work on commission.

"Big mistake... huge," she tells them before heading off to spend more money.

Have you ever wondered if a business would treat someone like that in real life, just because the way they were dressed? One YouTube content maker decided to try a little social experiment to see what would happen if he dressed down and attempted to get a seat at a fancy restaurant for lunch.

Coby Persin, the 23-year-old YouTuber, had cameras filming him as he approached an upscale restaurant in Florida. He was wearing some scruffy-looking clothes and carrying a large garbage bag with him. He approached the host and asked to be seated at a table for two.

"Hi how are you? I would like to get a table for me and my friend Ronaldo - to see the menu maybe," he says.

The host immediately blocks Persin's way and tries to send him away. "I'm sorry. We're not going to be able to do it sir... This place is a little too expensive for you."

Persin says he was planning to have lunch with his friend, Reynaldo, and assures the host that he has money.

Persin pulls out a phone and tells his friend to come pick him up because he's getting kicked out. The host, whose face is blurred to protect his privacy, bugs the man to get away from the front of the restaurant and stand aside.

Shortly after placing his call, a Reynaldo pulls up in a white Rolls Royce. Persin has Reynaldo pull a suitcase out of the Trunk and pops it open. It's full of stacks of cash.

"I told you I had money. What's crazy is the way you judged people just by their appearance. I might buy this spot just so I can fire you - you're lucky," he said.

He then has Reynaldo pack his bags in the trunk and drives away. It was like out of a scene from a movie.

Persin is known for his social experiments and stunts. He got a lot of attention in New York City when he started putting plants in potholes. He said he did it to help people avoid damaging their cars.

“When I was driving around New York City, I hit a pot hole and my tire popped and I had to buy a new one,” he explained. “So I was thinking to myself, how as New Yorkers can we avoid these pot holes?”

“Had I seen a plant inside the pot hole, I would have drove around the plant and not hit the pot hole…. So I'm going around with different sized plants and putting them in different sized pot holes so New Yorkers avoid them.”